Grapevine: TPG veteran set to head KKR's India PE business

By Ankit Agarwal

  • 19 May 2020
Credit: 123RF.com

Gaurav Trehan, a partner at buyout firm TPG, is set to head the Indian private equity business of KKR & Co., people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg.

Trehan, who joined TPG in 2004, quit the firm this month.

Earlier this month, KKR was planning to hire a new managing director, who could head the PE vertical for its India business, according to VCCircle report

The firm had appointed recruitment agency Russell Reynolds Associates to find a new leader. Executives from Warburg Pincus, Apax Partners and Bain Capital had made it to the shortlist.

Private equity firms are strengthening their management teams expecting the pandemic to boost buyout opportunities in India.

Carlyle Group Inc. is also looking for a new managing director to lead or co-lead its business in India, according to Bloomberg's new report last month.

Meanwhile, the digital learning platform FrontRow is raising $3 million from Lightspeed and SAIF Partners, two people familiar with the matter told Entrackr.

This comes at a time when online learning has been garnering high demand with people across the country being confined to their homes.

“They are building something on the lines of Masterclass,” said one of the persons cited above, requesting anonymity.

In another news, Venture Capital firm Exfinity Ventures, founded by former IT services executives, has raised Rs 80 crore as part of the first close of its third fund, Exfinity Technology Fund 3, with a target corpus of Rs 500 crore, V Balakrishnan, founder and chairman at the firm, told TechCircle.

The final close is expected to materialize in up to 24 months. Exfinity aims to invest in up to 20 companies from its third fund with cheque sizes ranging from $1-2 million.

Exfinity had raised $20 million for its maiden technology fund in 2014. Its second fund worth Rs 300 crore, which was launched in 2015, was joined by Rakesh Jhunjhunwala.